Shouldn't We Talk About 'It'
by Skywindow
Summary: Emma and Snow spend some time together once she returns from New York.


**Shouldn't We Talk About 'It'**

**By Skywindow**

**Summary: Emma and Snow spend some time together once she returns from New York.**

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When Emma lived in Boston, she would come home from a hard day at work and pour herself a whiskey sour, indulge in some trashy TV and go to bed. Since she had come to Storybrooke, she hadn't once thought about going back to Massachusetts, but tonight she wanted nothing more than to be back in her old apartment alone. Of course, she loved her parents and Henry, but with everything going on lately it was getting to be too much. She hadn't had a moment to breathe since the curse broke.

She lay on her bed in their apartment, staring up at the ceiling. David and Mary Margaret were downstairs making dinner as Henry regaled them with stories about New York. He still wasn't speaking to her. If he did, it was with a bitter tone. He had wanted to spend the night with Neal, but since his father was preoccupied at the hospital watching after Gold and his grandparents hadn't seen him in almost a week, he'd agreed to come home with her. She wasn't sure what to do about him. She wasn't sure what to do about anything.

"Emma?" Snow's voice came from the top of the stairs. Emma gasped and sat up. "Sorry. I didn't mean to scare you."

"It's okay." Emma mumbled, massaging her temples.

The brunette had a plate of food and glass of water in her hands. She came over to the bed and sat it on the nightstand. "I brought you something to eat—and some Excedrin for your head."

"Thanks." Emma said, managing a small smile. She quickly reached for the glass and white pills, swallowing them in one gulp. Snow stood, awkwardly shifting her feet.

"I'll, um—I'll leave you alone." She said in a very Mary-Margaret-like fashion.

"Wait," Emma said.

She could tell her mother wanted to talk to her, and as much as she wanted to be alone, she promised herself she would be more open with her parents when she got back. She knew how much it hurt when your kid pushed you away—first hand. Snow turned, waiting.

"Could you sit with me for a while?" She finished.

"Of course," Snow smiled. "Let me go get my plate and let your father know."

She disappeared down the stairs. Emma slid her plate from the nightstand and examined its contents: grilled chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy and green beans. She could've done without the greens, but it was still nice to have a home cooked meal. Her mother certainly lived up to her fairytale reputation in that way. Snow appeared a few moments later with her own plate and took a seat on the end of the bed. Emma expected her to ask a thousand questions about what had happened in New York, but instead she said:

"Your father and I fought a giant while you were gone."

Emma's eyebrows shot up. "What?"

Snow nodded. "Mm-hm. Hook and Cora brought him over. He had a grudge against Charming—well, Charming's twin brother—Did you know he had a twin brother?"

"It doesn't surprise me," Emma sighed, "Every time I turn a corner we're related to someone else."

Snow laughed. "Well, he eventually realized we were on his side. The dwarves have taken a quite liking to him." She said, taking another bite of chicken.

"Anything else I should know about?" Emma asked.

"I missed you a lot." Snow said after a moment.

Emma's features softened. She hadn't been expecting that, especially since she had never experienced anyone missing her before. She had never had a family to care when she left or a home to come back to.

"I missed you, too," she said, softly.

Snow smiled a little, trying to keep her emotions at bay. Charming had assured her, over and over, that Emma was an adult and could take care of herself, but she knew her daughter was hurting and that made her ache.

"Your father missed you, too," Snow continued. "He just shows it differently. He keeps telling me how much he wants to teach you proper swordsmanship."

Emma laughed. "There's nothing wrong with how I fight. I did kill a dragon."

"Oh, of course. You are the _savior_." Snow said, dramatically.

"Hey, if it weren't for me you'd still be fawning over a married guy working at an animal shelter."

"That's true." Snow nodded, her smile fading. "As painful as it was to be cursed, sometimes I miss it. It was a lot simpler being Mary Margaret."

"But, we didn't know..." Emma trailed off.

"Yes," Snow agreed, "But, back then we could just talk. I knew how to be your friend. I have no idea how to be your mother."

"You're doing a pretty good job so far." Emma said, offering a small smile.

"I'm glad you think so." Snow replied, looking down at her plate.

"We'll figure it out eventually," Emma added.

"Let's hope. Of all the parenting books I read in the Enchanted Forest, none of them ever covered this." She said, wistfully.

Emma laughed. They sat in silence for a few moments, both thinking about what could have been. "It would've been nice—you know—growing up there," Emma started, "I try not to think about it because I know it's impossible and if I had I probably wouldn't have Henry, but sometimes I can't help it. I know you would've been such great parents. I can see David teaching me how to swordfight and you reading me stories and—it's just so unfair, you know? Why did it have to be me? Why did I have to be the savior? Why couldn't it have been someone else's kid?" She stopped herself, realizing she was getting carried away. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean..."

"No," Snow said, "It's okay. I wonder the same thing."

"It sucks," Emma said, taking a large bite of mashed potatoes.

"I know," Snow said, "But we have each other now. It might be twenty-eight years late, but we're together and we're all trying our hardest to make up for lost time—you and Henry included."

"Henry won't even speak to me."

"He's just hurt," Snow said. "He'll get over it. You just have to give him some time."

"He said I was like Regina, that she used to lie to him too." Emma said, miserably.

"Oh, Emma," Snow sighed, "You aren't like her at all. Regina lied to him for her own gain. She made him think he was crazy. You lied to protect him. He'll come to understand that."

"Really?" Emma scoffed. "Neal looks like a knight in shining armor right now. If he never sees his father for what he was, how is he supposed to understand why I kept them apart?"

"Well, he will have to find out the truth sometime." Snow replied.

Emma nodded, silently.

"Emma, I know things seem impossible right now—but you're doing the best you can and that's all you can do. Henry will come around. And I'm sure that everything with Neal will work out for the best. We'll have our happy ending."

"That's awfully hopeful." Emma mumbled.

"Well, that's kind of my thing," Snow smiled, trying to lighten the mood. "Good always wins. You have to believe that."

"Maybe in the Enchanted Forest," Emma replied, "But here? It seems like the opposite."

Snow thought back to the incident in the clock tower. She had chosen not to tell Emma about it, not wanting to add to her stress, but it was weighing on her mind. Emma was right. Where had good gotten them in Storybrooke? It seemed like every time they were close to finally winning, something else happened to push them down.

"Things will change," Snow assured her, speaking more to herself than to her daughter. Emma nodded, pushing her green beans away from the remainder of mashed potatoes on her plate. "Charming suggested we watch a movie as a family tonight." She said, changing the subject. "Does that sound good?"

"Yeah," Emma replied with a sigh. "That would be nice."

"Good," Snow smiled. "Now eat your green beans or no dessert." Emma shot her a dirty look, which she returned with what Emma had donned her "mother look." She tried to hide her grin at the annoyed expression on her daughter's face as she caved and took a hesitant bite of the vegetables.

They were going to be fine.

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Reviews are greatly appreciated! Enjoy the episode tonight.


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